Julie Mehretu: City Sitings

In her celebrated large-scale paintings, which are built up with layers of acrylic paint on canvas and overlaid with gestural pen and ink marks, Ethiopian-born, New York-based artist Julie Mehretu explores issues of mobility, social organization, political entanglement and global competition. Featured in this crisply designed volume are five new works from her city-specific series City Sitings, Detroit-related and all created for her exhibition at that city's Institute of Arts. The series references the history of painting while simultaneously mapping multiple, often conflicting, experiences of the urban landscape. Embedded in the seemingly abstract compositions are such referential elements as architectural blueprints and commercial logos. Making use of addition and erasure, Mehretu's process mirrors that of urban change itself. Collapsing the particular energy and history of a city, Mehretu gives the viewer a new perspective on his or her own surroundings.Allen, Siemon is the author of 'Julie Mehretu: City Sitings', published 2007 under ISBN 9780895581617 and ISBN 0895581612.